Spike.



No. 634,413. Patented ont'. 3, |899. s. w. HIGGINS.

SPIKE.

(Applicatian led Oct. 12, 1898.)

(No Model.)

llllll/l/Ill/ l www 1|" l UNITED STATES PATENT FETCE,

SYLVESTERV. HIGGINS, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF THREE- FOIIRTI'ISTO IV. I-I. DEWEES, OF MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN.

SPIKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 634,413, dated October3, 1899.

Application tiled October l2, 1898.

T0 @ZZ whom t may concern:

Beit known thatl, SYLvnsTER W. HIGGINS, a citizenof the United States,residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne and State of Michigan, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Spikes, of which thefollowing is aspecilication, reference being had therein to theaccompanying drawings.

My invention more specifically relates to railway-spikes; and theprincipal object of the invention is to produce a spike which combinesthe advantages of the hollowand of the solid spike, the former havingthe advantage of superior holding quality and of beinglight and easytodrive, while the latter has the advantage of greater durability underthe various contingencies of use.

To this end my invention consists in inaking a composite spike the shankof which or that portion which drives into the tie is made hollow, whilethe head and neck is a solid forging or casting, all as more fullyhereinafter described and claimed, and shown in the drawings, in which-Figures 1 and 2 are perspective views of my improved spike, showing itrespectively in front and rear elevation. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation ofthe parts of the spike separately before welding together. Fig. 4 is aside elevation of the parts in Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 is a cross-section online @c .r in Figs. 'l and 2.

The head proper, A, is of the usual size and shape as in solid spikesan'd is formed integrally with a solid rectangular-shaped neck portiona, terminatingin a tang b. The shank B is formed of'a suitableblank ofsheet-steel shaped between dies, and it is substantially channel-shapedin cross-section, with wings c at the open ends of the channel, whichextend laterally on opposite sides in a plane with the back of thespike. At the lower end of the shank a point C is formed, and the lowerends of the wings c are cut away at a slant toward the point, forminginclines e on opposite sides of the channel.

The tang b of the solid portion of the spike is made of asize to fitinto and fill the hollow of the shank at the upper end, and the neckportion a rests squarely upon the shank by means of the shoulders d?,thereby making a Serial No. 693,331. (No model.)

flush connection between'the neck portion a and the shank, when the twoparts are united together by welding or brazing. The tang is likewiseprovided with the inclined face f, as

shown in Fig. 2, its function being to compress the material in the rearor" the spike, an d thereby force the latter in the direction of therail. By this construction I obtain a spike which is not only superiorin holding quality to the hollow spike of channel-shaped crosssection byreason of having wings c, which increase the superficial area, but thelatter give the spike a better bearing at the back, whereby it canbetter resist any lateral thrust of the rail, which especially tendstoloosen or bend the spikes along curves in the rails. By reason of thesolid head the spike will not easily be disgured in driving or pulling,and can thus be repeatedly used. Further, the solid neck portion givesthe spike the wearing qualityof the solid spike, as it is well knownthat the rail considerably wears away the spike at the neck, therebymaking the all-hollow spike of inferior wearing quality.

The tang not only forms a means for solidly welding the parts together,but it makes the upper portion ot the shank solid, and thus capable ofresisting greater bending strain and by giving it more surface on theback to resist the lateral thrust of the rail.

y spike may be made without the wings o. The latter, however, inaddition to the advantages already set forth have the peculiar advantagethat they act in driving like wedges, compelling the sides of the spiketo clench the core of wood between them, and thus make the spike ofsuperior holding quality.

Vhat I claim as my invention is l. A spike, composed of a solid head anda shank of uniform channel shape in cross-section, vertical wingsextending at right angles from the sides of the shank and the inclines eformed upon the lower end portions of the wings.

2.oAspike composed ofl a shank of uniform channel shape incross-section, and a solid head united to the shank, the head beingformed with a neck portion iiush with the shank-body and with a reducedportion or IOO tang provided with :1n inclined face f, saidtangprojectinginto and closing the upper end of the shank at the back.

3. A spike composed of a solid head and a shank of uniform channel shapein cross-seetionJ and vertical Wings extending laterally from the sidesof the shank in the plane of the back of' the spike.

4. Aspike composed of a shank of uniform g channel shape incross-section, a tang projecting into and closingthe upper end of the Ashank, a neck integral with the tung supported upon and extending abovethe shank, and a head for the neck, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SYLVESTER W. HIGGINS.

Witnesses:

M. B. ODOGHERTY, OTTO F. BARTHEL.

